Revolver crane latch

ABSTRACT

A revolver having a swing-out cylinder that is rotatably mounted on a pivoted cylinder crane is provided with crank latch means for releasably locking the cylinder crane to the frame when the cylinder is in firing position behind the barrel of the revolver. The crane latch means comprises a longitudinally movable rear crane latch plunger mounted on the rearward end of the cylinder and a forward crane latch lever pivotally mounted on the crane below the ejector rod. The rearward end of the crane latch plunger is adapted to be received in a plunger bearing hole formed in the frame immediately to the rear of the cylinder and the crane latch lever has a push rod engaging arm that extends upwardly into the central bore of the ejector rod and a crane locking arm that is adapted to be received in a crane locking recess formed in the main body of the revolver when the cylinder crane is in its closed position. A crane latch push rod is disposed in contiguous central bores formed in the ejector means and ejector rod, the push rod extending from the rear crane latch plunger to the push rod engaging arm of the forward crane latch lever. A crane latch plunger spring urges the crane latch plunger and crane latch push rod rearwardly, and crane latch release means are provided for pressing the crane latch plunger and push rod forwardly against the pressure of said spring. Forward movement of the cane latch release means moves the crane latch plunger and crane latch push rod forwardly, thereby causing the rear crane latch plunger to be disengaged from the plunger bearing hole formed in the frame and also causing the crane locking arm of the forward crane latch lever to be disengaged from the crane locking recess formed in the main body of the revolver.

atent i191 June 4, 1974 REVOLVER CRANE LATCH [75] Inventor: William B. Ruger, Southport, Conn.

[73] Assignee: Sturm. Ruger & Co. Inc., Southport,

Conn.

Primary Examiner-Benjamin A. Borchelt Assistant Examiner-C. T. Jordan 7] ABSTRACT 1 i A revolver having a swing-out cylinder that is rotatably mounted on a pivoted cylinder crane is provided with crank latch means for releasably locking the cylindcr crane to the frame when the cylinder is in firing position behind the barrel of the revolver. The crane latch means comprises a longitudinally movable rear crane latch plunger mounted on the rearward end of the cylinder and a forward crane latch lever pivotally mounted on the crane below the ejector rod. The rearward end of the crane latch plunger is adapted to be received in a plunger bearing hole formed in the frame immediately to the rear of the cylinder and the crane latch lever has a push rod engaging arm that extends upwardly into the central bore of the ejector rod and a crane locking arm that is adapted to be received in a crane locking recess formed in the main body of the revolver when the cylinder crane is in its closed position. A crane latch push rod is disposed in contiguous central bores formed in the ejector means and ejector rod, the push rod extending from the rear crane latch plunger to the push rod engaging arm of the forward crane latch lever. A crane latch plunger spring urges the crane latch plunger and crane latch push rod rearwardly, and crane latch release means are provided for pressing the crane latch plunger and push rod forwardly against the pressure of said spring. Forward movement of the cane latch release means moves the crane latch plunger and crane latch push rod forwardly, thereby causing the rear crane latch plunger to be disengaged from the plunger bearing hole formed in the frame and also causing the crane locking arm of the forward crane latch lever to be disengaged from the crane locking recess formed in the main body of the revolver.

8 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures l REVOLVER CRANE LATCH BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to revolvers having swing-out cylinders, and in particular to crane latch means for locking the cylinder crane in its closed position.

2. The Prior Art A conventional revolver of the swing-out cylinder type comprises, broadly, a revolver frame, a barrel secured to the frame, a firing mechanism including a hammer and trigger, a cylinder, a cylinder crane on which the cylinder is rotatably mounted and which itself is pivotally mounted on the revolver frame,'a longitudinally movable ejector and ejector rod, and crane latch means for releasably locking the cylinder crane to the frame when in its closed position with the cylinder in its firing position behind the barrel.

The crane latch means commonly comprises a spring loaded crane latch plunger located at the rearward end of the cylinder pivot shaft and a spring loaded ejector rod detent located adjacent the forward end of the ejector rod. When the cylinder crane is in its closed position with the cylinder in its firing position, the rearward end of the crane latch plunger is received in a latch receiving opening formed in the frame immediately to the rear of the cylinder, and the ejector rod detent is received in a detent bearing recess formed in the forward end of the ejector rod. When the crane latch plunger is moved forwardly out of engagement with the latch receiving opening formed in the frame, the cylinder and cylinder crane are unlatched and can be swung sideways out of the frame for loading and/or cleaning of the revolver. In this arrangement the rearward end of the cylinder and cylinder crane are securely locked in their proper place by the latch plunger when the crane is in its closed position. However, the forward end of the cylinder and cylinder crane are locked in place only by the detent or bearing located at the tip of the weak and flexible ejector rod, and this can lead to difficulties and possible inaccuracy if the forward end of the uppermost chamber of the cylinder is slightly out of alignment with the bore of the barrel when the revolver is fired.

l have now devised an improved crane latch means in which the forward end of the cyinder and cylinder crane, as well as the rearward end thereof, are securely locked in place when the crane is in its closed position, thereby eliminating the aforementioned difficulties and possible inaccuracy encountered with previous types of crane latch arrangements. Both forward and rearward locking means are disengaged simultaneously by pressing one release device which is conveniently located, thereby facilitating quick ejection and reloading of the revolver.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The revolver to which the present invention relates has a main body that includes the revolver frame and the barrel secured thereto. It also has a cylinder having a longitudinal center bore, and a cylinder crane having a cylinder pivot shaft on which the cylinder is rotatably mounted and a crane pivot shaft by means of which the cylinder crane is pivotally secured to the frame. A longitudinally movable ejector means is centrally mounted on the rear of the cylinder, and an ejector rod extends from the ejector means forwardly through a longitudinal bore formed in the cylinder pivot shaft of the crane, said ejector means and ejector rod being formed with contiguous central bores extending longitudinally therethrough.

The improved crane latch means of the invention comprises a longitudinally movable rear crane latch plunger disposed in the central bore of the ejector means, a forward crane latch lever pivotally mounted on the crane below the ejector rod, and a crane latch push rod disposed in the contiguous center bores of the ejector means and the ejector rod. The rearward end of the crane latch plunger is adapted to be received in a plunger receiving opening or hearing hole formed in the frame immediately to the rear of the ejector means when the cylinder crane is' in its closed position. The pivoted crane latch lever has a push rod engaging arm that extends upwardly into the central bore of the ejector rod and 'a crane locking arm that is adapted to be received in a crane locking recess formed in the main body of the revolver when the cylinder crane is in its closed position. The crane latch push rod extends from the rear crane latch plunger to the push rod engaging arm of the forward crane latch lever'so that, when the crane latch plunger is moved forwardly the crane latch push rod also moves forwardly against the push rod engaging arm of the pivoted crane latch lever. As a consequence, when the crane latch plunger is moved forwardly out of engagement with the plunger receiving opening in the frame, the crane locking arm of the pivoted crane latch lever is simultaneously moved out of engagement with the crane locking recess in the main body of the revolver.

A crane latch plunger spring urges the crane latch plunger and the crane latch push rod rearwardly so that the crane latch plunger is normally received in the plunger receiving opening in the frame when the cylinder is in its closed position. In addition, a crane latch lever spring urges the crane locking arm of the pivoted crane latch lever into engagement with the crane locking recess of the revolver when the cylinder crane is in its closed position. Manually operated crane latch release means are provided forpressing the crane latch plunger, the push rod and the pivoted latch lever forwardly against the pressure of said springs. The crane locking recess may be formed in any part of the main body of the revolver adjacent the crane latch lever. For example, the crane locking recess may be formed in the frame of the revolver or in the housing for the forward end of the ejector rod, as hereinafter explained.

- BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The revolver crane latch of the invention will be better understood from the following description thereof in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:'

FIG. 1 is a left side elevation of the revolver with unessential parts omitted,

FIG. 2 is a sectional view along line 2-2 of FIG. 1 showing the cylinder crane in its closed position,

FIG. 3 is a sectional view along line 3-3 of FIG. 1 showing the cylinder crane latch and ejector assembly,

FIG. 4 is a sectional view along line 4-4 of FIG. 2 showing one embodiment of the crane latch lever of the invention in its crane locking position,

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the crane latch lever of FIG. 4 in its unlocked position,

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view along line 6-6 of FIG. 4,

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary left side elevation of the revolver showing another embodiment of the crane latch lever,

FIG. 8 is a sectional view along line 88 of FIG. 7,

FIG. 9 is a sectional view along line 9-9 of FIG. 8 showing the crane latch lever of FIG. 7 in its crane locking position, and

FIG. 10 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 9 showing the crane latch lever in its unlocked position.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT As shown in FIG. I of the drawings, the revolver embodying the invention comprises, in its major components, a frame II, a barrel 12, a cylinder 13, a cylinder crane 14, a hammer IS, a trigger l6 and a trigger guard 17. The cylinder 13 is formed with a longitudinal central bore 18 and with a plurality of cartridge receiving chambers 19. The cylinder crane I4 is pivotally secured to the frame Ill by means of the crane pivot shaft 20 (shown in outline in FIGS. 1 and 2), and it is formed with a rearwardly extending cylinder pivot shaft 21 on which the cylinder 13 is rotatably mounted. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the cylinder crane i4 and the cylinder pivot shaft 21 are formed with a longitudinal center bore 22. Longitudinally movable ejector means 23 is centrally mounted on the rearward end of the cylinder 13, the ejector means having a sleeve portion 24 that extends forwardly into the longitudinal bore 22 of the cylinder pivot shaft 21. An ejector rod 25 extends from the ejector means 23 forwardly through the longitudinal bore 22 formed in the crane l4 and cylinder pivot shaft 21, the forward end ofthe ejector rod 25 normally being received in the ejector rod housing 26 that is integrally formed on the underside of the barrel 12.

As also shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, an ejector sleeve cap 27 is threadably secured to the forward end of the sleeve portion 24 of the ejector means 23. An ejector spring 28 is disposed in the longitudinal bore 22 of the cylinder pivot shaft 21. The pressure of the ejector spring 28 on the ejector sleeve cap urges the ejector means 23 and the ejector rod 25 forwardly toward their forward limit of travel as shown in FIG. 3. The ejector means 23, the sleeve cap 27 and the ejector rod 25 are formed with contiguous central bores 29, 30 and 31, respectively, that extend longitudinally therethrough. The cylinder and cylinder crane assembly is designed to be swung sideways about the crane pivot shaft 20 from its normally closed position (shown in FIGS. l and 2) to its open position (not shown) for loading and unloading of the chambers W of the cylinder 13. Cylinder latch means are provided for releasably locking the cylinder crane M in its closed position as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 The present invention provides an improved crane latch means that securely locks both the rearward and the forward ends of the cylinder and cylinder crane assembly in its closed position as herein described.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 2 through 5 of the drawings the crane latch means comprises a longitudinally movable rear crane latch plunger 32 disposed in the central bore 29 of the ejector means 23, a forward crane latch lever 33 pivotally secured to the crane M by the pivot pin 34, and a crane latch push rod 35 disposed in the contiguous center bores 29, 30 and 3 of the ejector means 23, ejector sleeve cap 27 and ejector rod 25. The rearward end of the crane latch plunger 32 is adapted to be received in a plunger receiving opening 36 formed in the frame 11 immediately to the rear of the ejector means 23. The pivoted crane latch lever 33 has a push rod engaging arm 37 that extends upwardly into the central bore 31 of the ejector rod 25 and a crane locking arm 38 that is adapted to be received in a crane locking recess 39 formed in the housing 26 for the ejector rod 25. A latch lever spring 40 and plunger bear against the pivoted crane latch lever 33 and normally press the push rod engaging arm 37 of the lever 33 counterclockwise into contact with the forward end of the push rod 35 as shown in FIG. 4. The crane latch push rod 35 extends from the rear crane latch plunger 32 to the push rod engaging arm 37 of the crane latch lever 33. The rearward end of the push rod 35 is formed with a flange 42 that abuts against a similar flange 43 at the forward end of the plunger 32 and the forward end of the push rod 35 contacts the push rod engaging arm 37 of latch lever 33. A latch plunger spring 44 is disposed within the longitudinal center bore 29 of the sleeve portion 24 of the ejector means 23 and normally presses the push rod 35 and the crane latch plunger 32 rearwardly toward their rearward limit of travel as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

When the cylinder crane and cylinder assembly is in its closed position, the latch plunger spring 44 causes the latchplunger 32 to be received in the plunger receiving opening 36, and the latch lever spring 40 causes the crane locking arm 38 of the crane latch lever 33 to be received in the crane locking recess 39. The engagement of the crane latch plunger 32 in the crane receiving opening 36, and the engagement of the crane locking arm 38 in the crane locking recess 39, securely lock both the rearward and forward ends of the cylinder and cylinder crane assembly in its closed position, thereby virtually eliminating the possiblity of misalignment of the uppermost chamber of the cylinder 13 with the bore of the barrel when the revolver is fired.

In order to release the cylinder crane assembly from its normally closed position the crane latch plunger 32 must be moved out of engagement with the plunger receiving opening 36 and the crane locking arm 38 of the crane latch lever 33 must be moved out of engagement with the crane locking recess 39. In the embodiment shown in the drawings a crane latch release lever 46 is pivotally mounted on a vertically disposed pivot pin 47 mounted on the frame 11 and positioned so that the lever 46 rotates in the horizontal plane which coincides with the longitudinal axis of the crane latch plunger 32. As shown best in FIG. 3, the crane latch release lever 46 is advantageously an angular member having an external leg 48 and an internal leg 49. The external leg 48 is formed with a serrated thumb contacting surface and the internal leg 49 is provided with a forwardly extending plunger contacting lug 50 that bears against the rearward end of the crane latch plunger 32. When the external leg 48 of the latch release lever 46 is pressed inwardly, the lever 48 rotates about the pivot pin 47 so that the lug 50 presses the crane latch plunger 32 forwardly out of engagement with the plunger receiving opening 36. This, in turn, causes the crane latch push rod 35 to press against the push rod engaging arm 37 of the crane latch lever 33 so that the crane latch lever 33 rotates about the pivot pin 34. Rotation of the crane latch lever 33 moves the crane locking arm 38 out of engagement with the crane locking recess39 as shown in FIG. 5, thereby permitting the cylinder and crane assembly to be swung outwardly to its open position.

When the cylinder and crane assembly is in its open position, the chambers 19 of the cylinder 13 can be loaded and unloaded in the usual manner. In order to facilitate removal of spent cartridge cases from the chambers l9the ejector means 23 is designed to be moved longitudinally rearwardly against the pressure of the ejector spring 28 by means of the longitudinally movable ejector rod 25. The ejector means 23 must rotate with the cylinder 13 in order to remain in proper alignment with the chambers 19 thereof. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 6 the sleeve portion 24 of the ejector means is formed with a flat surface 51 that extends through a D-shaped hole at the rear of the cylinder 13 to prevent rotation of these parts relative to each other. The ejector rod is normally secured to the ejector means and rotates with the ejector means when the cylinder is rotated. However, in the crane latch means of the invention, the push rod engaging arm 37 of the crane latch lever 33 extends upwardly into the central bore 31 of the ejector rod 25. As a consequence, the ejector rod 25 cannot rotate with the ejector means 23, the rearward end of the ejector rod 25 being in sliding contact with the forward end of theejector sleeve cap 27 secured to the ejector means 23. Moreover, in order to permit the ejector rod 25 to be moved rearwardly without interference from the push rod engaging arm 37 of the crane latch lever 33, the underside of the ejector rod 25 is formed with a longitudinal slot 52 .through which the push rod engaging arm 37 extends.

in the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 7 through of thedrawings the crane latch means comprises the aforementioned rear crane latch plunger 32 (not shown in FlGS. 7-10), the aforementioned crane latch push rod 35, and a crane latch lever 53 that is pivotally secured to the crane 14 by the pivot pin 54 and that is the full equivalent of the crane latch lever 33. The pivoted crane latch lever 53 has a push rod engaging arm 57 that extends upwardly into the central bore 31 of the ejector rod 25 and a crane locking arm 58 that is adapted to be received in the crane locking recess 59 formed in the frame ll. A latch lever spring 60 and plunger bear against the pivoted crane latch lever 53 and normally press the crane locking arm 58 into engagement with the crane locking recess 59, as shown best in FIG. 9. As before, the latch plunger spring 44 (not shown in FIGS. 7-10) normally presses the push rod 35 and the latch plunger 32 rearwardly toward their rearward limit of travel so that, when the cylinder and cylinder crane assembly is in its closed position, the latch plunger 32 is received in the opening 36 (not shown in FIGS. 7-10) and the crane locking arm 58 of the crane latch lever 53' is received in the crane locking recess 59, as shown in FlG. 9. When the The crane latch means of the invention is not limited to the two specific embodiments hereinbefore described. However, in all embodiments of the invention the engagement of the crane latch plunger in the crane receiving opening of the frame, and the engagement of the crane locking arm of the crane latch lever in the crane locking recess, securely lock both the rearward and the forward ends of the cylinder and cylinder crane assembly in its closed position, thereby virtually eliminating the possibility of misalignment of the uppermost chamber of the cylinder when the revolver is fired. The cylinder and cylinder crane assembly is unlatched sim ply by pressing the latch release lever 46 inwardly with the users thumb which causes the rear latch plunger 32 and the forward latch lever 33 (or 53) simultaneously to be disengaged from the rear plunger receiving opening 36 and the forward crane locking recess 39 (or 59), respectively.

I claim: I

1. In a revolver having a main body that includes a revolver frame and a barrel secured to the frame, a cylinder having a longitudinal center bore, a cylinder crane having a cylinder pivot shaft on which the cylinder is rotatably mounted and a crane pivot shaft by means of which the cylinder crane is pivotally secured to the frame, longitudinally movable ejector means centrally mounted on the rear of the cylinder, an ejector rod extending from the ejector means forwardly trhough a longitudinal bore formed in the cylinder pivot shaft of the crane, said ejector means and ejector rod being formed with contiguous central bores extending longitudinally therethrough, and crane latch means for releasably locking the cylinder crane to the frame in its closed position with the cylinder in firing position behind the barrel, the improvement in which the crane latch means comprises: a

a longitudinally movable rear crane latch plunger disposed in the central bore of the ejector means, the rearward end of the crane latch plunger being adapted to be received in a plunger receiving opening formed in the frame immediately to the rear of the ejector means when the cylinder crane is in its closed position, i

a forward crane latch lever pivotally mounted on the crane below the ejector rod, said crane latch lever having a push rod engaging arm that extends upwardly into the central bore of the ejector rod and a crane locking arm that is adapted to be received in a crane locking recess formed in the main body of the revolver when the cylinder crane is in its closed position, and

a crane latch push rod disposed in the contiguous central bores of the ejector means and the ejector rod and extending from the rear crane latch plunger to the push rod engaging arm of the forward crane latch lever, whereby forward movement of the rear crane latch plunger causes the crane latch push rod to bear against and to rotate the forward crane latch lever. 2. The revolver according to claim 1 in which manually movable latch release means are mounted on the frame adjacent the plunger receiving opening therein, said latch release means simultaneously moving the crane latch plunger forwardly out of engagement with said plunger receiving opening and moving the crane locking arm of the crane latch lever out of engagement with the crane locking recess when said latch release means is manually moved.

3. The revolver according to claim 1 in which a crane latch plunger spring urges the crane latch plunger and the crane latch push rod rearwardly. and in which a crane latch lever spring urges the crane locking arm of the crane latch lever into'engagement with the crane locking recess when the cylinder crane is in its closed position.

4. The revolver according to claim 1 in which the barrel is provided with a housing for the forward end of the ejector rod, and in which the crane locking recess is formed in said housing.

5. The revolver according to claim 1 in which the crane locking recess is formed in the frame of the revolver.

6. The revolver according to claim 1 in which the ejector means rotates with the rotatably mounted cylinder and in which the ejector rod does not rotate, the forward end of the ejector means being in sliding contact with the rearward end of the ejector rod.

7. The revolver according to claim 6 in which the forward end of the ejector means is provided with an ejector means cap. the ejector means cap being in sliding Contact with the rearward end of the ejector rod.

8. The revolver according to claim 1 in which the underside of the ejector rod is formed with a slot that communicates with the central bore of the ejector rod and through which the push rod engaging arm of the crane latch lever extends. 

1. In a revolver having a main body that includes a revolver frame and a barrel secured to the frame, a cylinder having a longitudinal center bore, a cylinder crane having a cylinder pivot shaft on which the cylinder is rotatably mounted and a crane pivot shaft by means of which the cylinder crane is pivotally secured to the frame, longitudinally movable ejector means centrally mounted on the rear of the cylinder, an ejector rod extending from the ejector means forwardly trhough a longitudinal bore formed in the cylinder pivot shaft of the crane, said ejector means and ejector rod being formed with contiguous central bores extending longitudinally therethrough, and crane latch means for releasably locking the cylinder crane to the frame in its closed position with the cylinder in firing position behind the barrel, the improvement in which the crane latch means comprises: a longitudinally movable rear crane latch plunger disposed in the central bore of the ejector means, the rearward end of the crane latch plunger being adapted to be received in a plunger receiving opening formed in the frame immediately to the rear of the ejector means when the cylinder crane is in its closed position, a forward crane latch lever pivotally mounted on the crane below the ejector rod, said crane latch lever having a push rod engaging arm that extends upwardly into the central bore of the ejector rod and a crane locking arm that is adapted to be received in a crane locking recess formed in the main body of the revolver when the cylinder crane is in its closed position, and a crane latch push rod disposed in the contiguous central bores of the ejector means and the ejector rod and extending from the rear crane latch plunger to the push rod engaging arm of the forward crane latch lever, whereby forward movement of the rear crane latch plunger causes the crane latch push rod to bear against and to rotate the forward crane latch lever.
 2. The revolver according to claim 1 in which manually movable latch release means are mounted on the frame adjacent the plunger receiving opening therein, said latch release means simultaneously moving the crane latch plunger forwardly out of engagement with said plunger receiving opening and moving the crane locking arm of the crane latch lever out of engagement with the crane locking recess when said latch release means is manually moved.
 3. The revolver according to claim 1 in which a crane latch plunger spring urges the crane latch plunger and the crane latch push rod rearwardly, and in which a crane latch lever spring urges the crane locking arm of the crane latch lever into engagement with the crane locking recess when the cylinder crane is in its closed position.
 4. The revolver according to claim 1 in which the barrel is provided with a housing for the forward end of the ejector rod, and in which the crane locking recess is formed in said housing.
 5. The revolver according to claim 1 in which the crane locking recess is formed in the frame of the revolver.
 6. The revolver according to claim 1 in which the ejector means rotates with the rotatably mounted cylinder and in which the ejector rod does not rotate, the forward end of the ejector means being in sliding contact with the rearward end of the ejector rod.
 7. The revolver according to claim 6 in which the forward end of the ejector means is provided with an ejector means cap, the ejector means cap being in sliding contact with the rearward end of the ejector rod.
 8. The revolver according to claim 1 in which the underside of the ejector rod is formed with a slot that communicates with the central bore of the ejector rod and through which the push rod engaging arm of the crane latch lever extends. 